William clark wood



UNITED STATES i PATENT OFFICE.

VILLIAM CLARK IVOOD, OF BROOKLYN, N EIM YORK, ASSIGNOR TO THE LEIVIS d: FOIVLER GIRDER-RAIL COMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

RAILWAY-CHAIR SPIKE.

SPBCIPICATIN forming part of Letters Patent No. 447,268, dated February 24, 1891.

Application filed November 6,1890. Serial No. 370,511. (No model.)

.To all whom it may concern: v

Be itknown that L WILLIAM CLARK WOOD, a citizen of the United States, andaresident of Brooklyn, in the State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Railway-Chair Spikes, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to the construction of withdrawable spikes for fastening down railway-chairs, and the like, as rail-braces and track-knees; and it consists in a novel spike, as hereinafter set forth and claimed.

The objects of this invention are to facilitate driving the spike straight and so as not to weaken the head, and, at the saine time, to facilitate withdrawing the spike by means of an ordinary claw-bar when the track is to be taken up or repaired, and -to re-enforce the union of a button-head with a square shaft or body.

A sheet of drawings accompanies this speciiication as part thereof.

Figure l of the drawings is a side view of the improved spike, with an added section of adjoining portions of a chair-base and a tie or sleeper in dotted lines. Fig. 2 represents a front or rear viewof the spike, and Fig. 3 is an end view thereof.

Like letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the several figures.

The spike has a more or less sharp point a, adapted to be driven into a wooden tie or sleeper T, Fig. 1, and a square and preferably straight shaft or body l), adapted to hold in the wood, and tted to a square spike-hole h, perpendicular to the dat top of the chair-base O, Fig. 1, such hole being so arranged as to have front and rear sides, so to speak, parallel with the lateral or front edge f of the base. Matching such front and rear sides of the spike-hole h, the spike has a pair of bolsters c c under its head d, which bolsters are convenient-ly of the full width of the body b, and project forward and rearward, respectively, to the perimeter of the head d, their outer surfaces being rounded, as best seen in Fig. 3, so that whichever bolster is at the front is readily straddled by the claw-bar.

The elevated head d is a round or buttonhead, having a convex top, which tends to insure that the eifect of driving blows shall be central or in line with .the shaft or body of the spike, and consequently will not bend the head or weaken its union with said shaft or body, which union, instead, is re-enforced by said bolsters c. The lateral edges of the head CZ, projecting beyond the sides of the bolsters c and shaft or body b, form square and highly-efficient shoulders e, to engage with the claw-bar in withdrawing the spike.

I am aware that spike-heads have been made of an upwardly-Haring or dovetailed shape, to provide for withdrawing the spikes by clawbars, and I hereby disclaim the saine as forming no part -of my invention. In my spike, square elevated shoulders engage with the claw-bar, and the claws are subjected to no spreading strain, while the rounded bolsters facilitate applying theclaw-bar, and render practicable providing such spikes with the popular button-head, as above. l

Having thus described the said spike, l claim as my invention and desire to patent under this specication- A spike for spiking down railway-chairs and the like, having a round head,convexon top, bolsters under said head at front and rear, and a square shaft or body central with reference to the head, the lateral edges of said head forming elevated shoulders to facilitate withdrawing the spike, and said bolsters serving to re-enforce the union between said body and the head, substantially as hereinbefore specified. WILLIAM CLARK WOOD.

Witnesses:

A. H. DOLLARI), G. W. MYERS. 

